In the past, quite a number of fuel dispensers or pumps have been produced which incorporate, thereon, electrical controls in combination with computers which provide signals both to the dispenser and to a display on the dispenser for indicating various parameters relating to credit card acceptance, price, delivery of fuel to a purchaser and automatically records of the transactions. Such an operation requires electricity, supplied via various cables and wires to various parts of the dispenser including the hydraulic portion of the dispenser. Thus, there is always a danger of fumes and fuel being ignited by an electrical spark. Therefore, special precautions must be taken to reduce the likelihood of generating sparks in the hydraulic area.
Many prior art fuel dispensers have switches, which must be actuated by a customer. These switches are in various places on the housing, including switches for the selecting which grade of fuel to deliver and which nozzle is to be used so that the customer must, locate the appropriate switch and remove the appropriate nozzle for the selected grade of fuel to be delivered.
Servicing of the various components of the prior art dispensers has been difficult, due to the inaccessibility of these components. The servicing, itself, of electrical components of the dispenser may result in sparks being generated so as to ignite gas fumes which have accumulated in the hydraulic area. Thus, strict regulations have been devised for fuel dispensers requiring, in "Class 1, Division I areas" explosive proof conduits and intrinsically safe barriers.
Another problem with fuel pumps which use electric displays is that, if fuel crystal displays are used, the temperature will affect the readability of the display. Thus, when heated, some fuel crystal displays become difficult to read.